Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1887-06-02
THE TIMES.
AGRICULTURE.
Necessity Of Proper Rotation Of
Crops.
Various Hints for the Farmer.

There is no soil that can be consider
ed as inexhaustible in fertility. It may
produce large crops for many years,
but every pound of substance removed
from it takes away SO much, and Soon
er or latter the yield will begin gradually
to lessen. Especially is this true when
the soil has been devoted to only one
kind of crop. On the rich soils of the
West the land is kept in corn year
after year, with good yields as the
result, but time proved the error Of SO
doing. The true mode of cultivation is
by a judicious system of rotation.
The soil may fail to produce certain
crops and yet be rich and well adapted
to some other kind. The three great
elements of fertility are nitrogen, phos-
phoric acid and potash to which We may
add lime, and as long rs the soil con-
tains these elements it will be capable
Of growing any crop suitable to the
climate, but the different crops do not
all feed alike, some requiring an excess
of certain elements that are not in de-
mand to such an extent by others. A
crop of wheat takes away large pro-
portion of nitrogen and rhosphoric acid,
but requires smaller proportion of
potash. It is plain that by growing
wheat on land for several years the nit
rogen and phosphoic acid would be
largely reduced in quantity, while the
land would be rich in potash. By grow
ing some other crop that thrives best
on potash, as clover, the soil should be
capable of yielding bountifully, while
the roots and stubble Of the clover
would return portion o. the nitrogen
required for succeeding crop. By ro-
tation, therefore, the plant food is not
only proportioned to different crops,
but system of renovation of the soil
is also the result. No matter what
crops may be grown, it cannot be denied
that something cannot be derived from
nothing and manure and fertilizers are
always beneficial, yet the best system is
that which utilities the storage capacity
of the plants to derive portion of ele-
ments required from the atmosphere,
and rotation is thus of valuable assist
ance. The inert manner of the soil is
reduced to solubility, the rains assist
the roots to store up matter, and the
soil is better enabled to supply the
proper food required for each plant.
Every season strawberries are intro
duced which are claimed to be superior
to their predecessors, only to be laid
aside after trial, the consequence be-
ing that fruit-growers cling to the old
Wilson, Crescent and other well known
kinds. No strawberry should be sold
as superior to all others until it shall
have received trials in every section
and under different methods Of cultiva-
ton. A strawberry well adapted to
one section may be worthless in another.
As showing the value of good seed
potatoes Mr.. E. Taylor, before the
Missouri Horticultural society, said:
"When the sprouts from the single eye
were just breaking the ground the tops
of the whole potatoes would be large
enough to pillow, and by the time the
single eyes would be large enough to
pillow, passing by regular graduation
according to the amount of seed used
to the largest, the rows from them were
half ready to TO lay by.
Parasites develope in a short time,
and spread rapidly. The sooner the
work of stamping out disease shall be
done less labor will be required. Min
ute fungi are capable Of wonderful
growth. The spores of the
yeast plant or of mushrooms will increase
to millions in few hours. Each form
of fungus is particular in its habits,
and all are capable of rapid development
requiring prompt and hasty work for
their suppression.
There is something to be considered
in the use of cultivators besides simply
working the crop. One of the advant-
ages is that by stirring the top soil,
especially when there is danger Of drouth
the loose earth serves as mulch, thereby
not only protecting the roots from dry
ness and heat, but also preventing the
loss Of moisture by evaporation from
the soil to considerable extent.
A good horse, with judicious use of a
horse hoe in the hands Of an experienced
person, should cultivate FIVE acres of corn
in day, and the young corn should be
kept clean and the earth loose from the
time it appears out of the ground until
it is ready to tassel. The early cult
walton is the most important. Thin out
some of the stalks if there be too many
in hill.
A fruit-grower states that he found
two ounces of nitrate of soda, applied
by digging down to the tap-root of a
peach tree, an excellent renovate for
the trees when the leaves had partially
turned yellow. In q few days the leaves
assumed beautiful green color, and
showed no signs of disease. This is
we'll worthy the consideration of all who
are interested.
Nitrate of soda, which is so frequent
ly recommended as one of the best nit.
rogenous fertilizers that can be used, is
oimplv crude Chill saltnefer which NAV